Amanda Bynes: Five Potential Acting Roles that Would Challenge the "Un-Retiring" Actress

After a short lived retirement that lasted a little over a month, Amanda Bynes announced her return to acting via Twitter this week. In June, the 24 year old actress had stated she was walking away from her lucrative career because acting wasn't fun for her anymore. A statement she followed up by saying, "If I don't love something anymore, I stop doing it. I don't love acting anymore so I've stopped doing it." Perhaps what the actress is lacking are a few interesting roles to sink her acting chops into. Here then are five potential roles that would help challenge Amanda Bynes' acting abilities.

Amanda Knox: The Made For TV Movie

Sooner or later there will be a TV movie based on the life of Amanda Knox, and who better to play the spunky, blue-eyed, college student convicted of murdering her roommate in Italy than Amanda Bynes? The story comes with all the sensationalism that made for TV movies call for, and Bynes would be challenged to portray Knox, a girl who has been painted by the Prosecution as having a Jekyll and Hyde type of personality. Capturing the transformation from "sweet girl next door" to "cold hearted killer" on film would help stretch Bynes' acting ability.

Supergirl (2012)

Face it, comic book superhero movies are hot these days and DC superheroes have fallen behind their Marvel counterparts in box office ticket sales. Sure, the Batman franchise is still red hot, but the last Superman movie fell flat on its face, and there hasn't been a Supergirl on the big screen since Helen Slater tried on the cape over 25 years ago. The timing is right for this superhero to make a comeback, and Bynes should make for a better Supergirl than Helen Slater.

The Anna Chapman Story

Of late the internet has been teeming with reports on Russian spy/party girl Anna Chapman. It will only be a matter of time before someone decides to make a movie based on the life of the captured (and released) Russian spy. With a little dye job, Amanda Bynes could easily pass for Chapman, and the role could be one tailored made for an actress transitioning to a more sexier image, while the plot itself can offer enough complexity to challenge Bynes acting skills.

Glee: The New Season

The TV show Glee is known for the guest appearances made by such noted celebrities as Neil Patrick Harris, Josh Groban, and Oliva Newton-John. Given the show's propensity for bringing in outside talent for a story arc or two, Glee would be the perfect vehicle for Amanda Bynes to further develop her singing and acting abilities. After all, Bynes is a capable singer (she was asked to hold back a bit for the movie Hairspray) who is still youthful enough to fit in with the kids of McKinley High School. Bynes could come in part way through the new season as an exchange student, and match her singing talents with the capable cast.

Clueless Part II

Though the Alice Silverstone's 1995 cult classic has spawn its fair share of imitation, there has never been a sequel to the original. With Silverstone now in her 30's, Amanda Bynes would be a perfect cast as the vapid Cher Horowitz in a sequel to Clueless. The movie should easily be up Bynes' alley since the actress rates the original as a personal favorite. Add to that the fact that Bynes has a flair for comedy, and you would be hard press to come up with a better actress for the role.

Sources:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/gossip/2010/07/amanda-bynes-returns-to-acting.html
http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/story/amanda-bynes-comes-out-of-retirement_1155130
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Meredith_Kercher#Amanda_Knox
http://amandabynesnews.blogspot.com/2007/06/amanda-held-back-singing-as-penny.html
http://www.dailystab.com/clueless-sequel-in-the-works/